The Hearts of Dragons (Closed for DarkWarrioress)

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian offered up a small smile to Zarya when she thanked him, but his gaze lowered from hers and turned away as she spoke of the demon and his father. She sounded sure of herself, which was a little reassuring, but even if the demon was defeated, and his father freed from it's corruption, that still might not absolve him in the eyes of his people. He did truly want to believe her, but as they'd discussed previously, faith wasn't his strong suit. Still, he'd listened to everything she had to say, lifted his gaze again when she mentioned that they should sleep, and nodded.

The pair prepared for bed in companionable silence, unrolling their blankets, setting the fire, laying their weapons nearby in case of a predator attack, and finally nestling into their blankets.

Lucian's mind was still preoccupied with his own thoughts, but when he heard her bid him goodnight, he turned once more towards her, a small smile on his lips. "Good night, Miss Zarya."

Sleep took it's time coming for Lucian that night, but not because of the change in locale or feeling less safe than he had in the village. It was because of the parts of the story he'd left out in his recounting to Zarya. It was true that he'd been ignorant of his father's true intentions when he led the assault on the green dragon, but he'd still ended up helping his father all the same. He tossed and turned all night, and even during the tiny bits of sleep that he was able to get weren't peaceful. He kept seeing the demon in his dreams, making his heart race, his body sweat, and eventually wake up before repeating the cycle all over again.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Morning came early and Zarya was already making up their breakfast. She was frowning deep in thought about last night. For some reason, Lucian couldn’t settle into sleep. Something was bothering him, but what it could be, she had no idea. The prince, she knew, was troubled about his father and his father’s men. Rightly so, but for some reason she couldn’t fathom, there was more to it than that. There was no way she could force him to confide in her and so, she would bide her time. There was one thing she could ask him about and she was determined to do so before they broke camp and left this cave. Glancing at the still sleeping prince, Zarya stepped into the jungle around them, searching the trees. She found what she was looking for and cut down a few of the fruit, making sure to leave many still hanging. She reentered the cave and began peeling and slicing up the sweet fruit to accompany their small breakfast.

Zaya was almost sure that Prince Lucian traveled with some enormous guilt. What part he had played before realizing what his father was up to, must be a heavy burden. What son doesn’t believe in his father until his father proves, beyond a shadow of doubt, he does not deserve his son’s loyalty? Zarya was not one to judge. Everyone made mistakes. If they learned from them, so much the better. In any case, she was here because her queen asked it of her and perhaps just a little because she was starting to like the prince as a person.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

When Lucian woke up the final time, he was genuinely surprised to see that Zarya wasn't in her blanket. He wouldn't have believed that he'd be able to sleep deep enough, with all the tossing and turning that he'd done, to miss her getting up and heading outside. He was tempted to go to the cave entrance and look out for her, or possibly call to her, but when he saw that her weapons were gone as well, he figured that she'd gone of her own free will. So he chose instead to just sit up, lift his hands to his face, and try to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

Lucian's patience was rewarded by the reappearance of Zarya, complete with a small bounty of fruit that she'd obviously picked from around the cave. He watched her start to peel it the first piece of fruit before he decided to rise to his feet, letting his blanket slide off of his cloaked form. He offered up a small smile in her direction before now walking towards the cave entrance. The light was dim outside, with an array of colors painting the sky above the Eastern tree line, clearly telling him that the sun had indeed risen, even if it hadn't quite made it past the tree line yet.

"Would that I could forget everything and stay in this beautiful forest of yours." Lucian said as he leaned against one side of the entrance, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply, breathing in the fresh morning air.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya was just climbing up the hill when she heard Lucien. As she came into view, she saw he was enjoying the early morning light.

“I would say there’s nothing stopping you, Prince Lucien but I know you will have responsibilities of your own to see to, eventually. For now…”

She dropped the small branch of bananas at his feet and moved past him to set the rabbit she had caught over the fire. As she squatted down and was spitting her catch, she continued talking.

“Enjoy what we have been given. I have a feeling we are going to wish for times like these in days to come.”

She didn’t know how she knew this but because of where they were headed, the road was bound to be long arduous. Zarya also knew that the prince did not sleep well but in fits. The small cave had been riddled with unspoken tension and perhaps anxiety that did not go unnoticed nor unfelt by her. He could hardly hide his tossing and turning. After a pause of time she softly asked.

“What is bothering you, Prince Lucien?”

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Though he said nothing in response to Zarya's words, Lucian's gaze did turn to follow her as she entered the cave, pausing with her as she dropped the branch of bananas at his feet before following her graceful movements towards the fire, setting a rabbit she'd caught over it. He was in the process of bending down to grab a banana off of the branch when he heard her question. His hand froze in midair, hovering over the bananas as his gaze lifted from them to look at her. His eyes flicked back and forth as he considered it, considered her, and considered his answer.

"I helped him...my father..." Lucian started as his gaze turned away from hers in shame. His back straightened as his gaze turned to look out of the entrance of the cave as he leaned against one side of it. "...not knowingly of course, but I helped him all the same." He paused for a long time then, debating just how much to tell Zarya. "He sent the ten people he trusted most to accompany the armies, including my brother..." As he spoke, his hands had slowly lifted, moving to the ties of his cloak. He undid the one at his waist first, then then the one at his neck. "...and me..." He finished as he leaned forward, lifted his hands, and brushed the cloak from his shoulders. As fate would have it, the sun crested the trees at that exact moment. It's light hit his armor and reflected off of every scale, making them shine like emeralds.

"We were given tools for a ritual that would bind the dragon's magic, and potions that could be thrown to bind it's wings. A dragon is still a dragon though, and I led one-thousand men into a dragon's lair. Each bite killed half a dozen men, each claw a dozen. It's tail killed two dozen with each swipe, and it's breath..." Lucian slowly shook his head. "I walked out with one-quarter of my men...one-quarter." He paused again, swallowing hard as his head slowly shook from side to side.

"My father groomed my brother to fight, to lead, and to rule. I was...ignored on the best days...hated on most, and loathed on the rest. If I weren't an heir to be married off for a political alliance, he would have smothered me in my cradle." Lucian's head finally lifted and turned towards Zarya then, his blue eyes filled not with hate, but sadness. "My brother was the only one that supported me picking up the sword and learning to fight." He walked back towards the fire, leaving his cloak on the ground where it had fallen, and lowered himself to his knees across from her, with his sheathed blade before him on the ground. "Everyone figured that either the training itself, or the physical exertion of the maneuvers would kill me."

Lucian's right hand lowered to reverently trace along the scabbard of his sword, barely touching it as it glided along it's surface, and even the handle of his sword itself. Only when he reached the tip of the handle did his hand reverse it's course and glide up the handle once more. His left hand moved to touch the scabbard as his right hand inched closer to the top. His touches grew more prominent as they moved, finally becoming full grips when he reached the top of the handle. His left hand pulled backwards on the scabbard as his right hand drew the mithril blade from it's home. The blueish-colored blade almost shone in the small cave. "This was a gift from my brother when I graduated and become a full-fledged Warblade. He had two swords made from a large chunk of mithril, exactly two swords, one for each of us. He was my only ally growing up, the one person I could always count on for support. If there was one other person I would have with us in all of this with, it would have been him." His gaze lifted from his sword to find Zarya's once more. "Unfortunately though, he was also the one person standing with my father and the demon when they spoke about the temples, the elementals, and the champions."

 

[DarkWarrioress]

"I helped him...my father..."

That made Zarya’s hands stop turning the spitted rabbit over the fire. She heard his tone of voice as he spoke and he wasn’t pleased with himself. As Lucian continued to speak, she went back to roasting their breakfast but not and then her eyes followed him as she listened. Zarya didn’t interrupt him as she felt he had a need to explain himself.

His chest armor. Dragon scales! Her fingers tightened on the spit before she forced them to relax. They. Killed. A. Dragon. Anger roiled in her gut. She never wanted to fight one. There were too few left in this world. Dragons had their time in this world and it felt like those times were coming to an end. Just like magic. Those things still existed, but they were vanishing into the mists of long ago. The look on Lucian’s face. The men he had lost. Indeed, a step price to pay for a dragon’s death. And for what? Power?

His sword was magnificent. Absolutely gorgeous, if one could call a weapon of destruction, gorgeous. Zarya searched her mind and couldn’t find a better word, however. Then there was his beloved brother. The brother he must ultimately come up against. There didn’t seem any other way and she wondered how Lucian would choose. His brother or saving the world?

“Prince Lucian, set your guilt aside. There will come a time for you to deal with it but that time is not now. As for the men you have lost, that was a terrible shame. Each man went into battle knowing they could lose their lives, they made a choice to stand with you, out of loyalty, out of duty, who knows for sure. What you must understand now is, that time is past. We, you, cannot change it. All we can do is face the future and the decisions we must make. How we respond to those decisions, will speak to our natures as a person. Let us hope our decisions are wise as well as brave.”

Zarya was quiet then. She felt she had spoken far too much as it was. However, the prince was feeling lost and guilty, she had hoped to lift him up out of that for nothing good came of being in that state of mind.

“And it seems our breakfast is ready. Will you bring me our plates, please?”

Something as simple as that brought her back to herself. Maybe it would for him too.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian nodded his head at Zarya's words, even if he couldn't bring himself to meet her gaze. When she asked for the plates though, he gladly set his sword and scabbard down, got up, retrieved them, and brought them to her, holding one in each hand as she prepared to dish up the meal she'd cooked.

"I do truly wish that it was that simple..." Lucian mused aloud. "...and if it were just the men that suffered, I might be able to. It's just so hard for me to wonder how many might have survived if I had fought better or been a better commander. The only saving grace for me in regards to them, is that they at least died believing that it was for the greater good. The same can't be said for their friends and family though..." His gaze turned longingly towards the entrance of the cave once more. "...so many wives lost their husbands, children lost their fathers, and friends lost other friends."

When Lucian did finally manage to lift his gaze, he searched for Zarya's once more. "I could never remember all those faces. So I use this armor as my penance, wearing it as a perpetual reminder of what I've done and what I'm fighting for. That is why I almost never take it off. I will either die in these scales, or see this world saved from the demon I helped unleash. Then, and only then, will I retire it.

With his food in hand, Lucian moved back towards his side of the fire, sat down, and started to eat, letting out a low groan and closing his eyes as he took his first bite of the hot and fresh meal she'd prepared, because for all of his worries, he was still trying to enjoy the little things in life, and delicious food was one of them.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya started to dish up their meal as Lucian held their plates.

"I do truly wish that it was that simple... and if it were just the men that suffered, I might be able to. It's just so hard for me to wonder how many might have survived if I had fought better or been a better commander. The only saving grace for me in regard to them, is that they at least died believing that it was for the greater good. The same can't be said for their friends and family though..."

“Prince Lucian,” she began setting aside her cooking utensils and took her plate from him, motioning him to join her not far from their fire. “You are but one man. A human one. Why do you continuously thrash yourself for the deeds of other men? Yes, you led them, but they went willingly, deceived or not. You cannot carry the grief of others upon your shoulders. Remember them and the sacrifice they made? Yes. beating yourself up over it? No. Mourn their loss and sacrifice then move on. They would not want you to dwell on their fate. They would want you to let them go.”

She reached across the space between them and laid a gentle hand on his leg.

“You need not have a penance, Prince Lucian. Free them from their still earth-bound ties by defeating your father and that demon who controls him. There is one thing I wish you to know before we go any further. I will not kill a dragon. There are too little left in this world as it is. I will fight for them. They are older than we can understand, and they are intelligent. If I have to kill your father to save one, I will.”

She looked directly at him. Her eyes serious. Whatever else they encountered, she could and would slay but not the remaining dragons. It was her queen’s final command to her and one she would have insured without royal command.

“Your penance, Prince Lucian, is not in that armor you wear but in your heart. You will never forget those men, even if you cannot and will not remember every face. Perhaps there is forgiveness for a father who wants a better world, but it is something that cannot be controlled by a demon because they only have only their own selfish ambition.”

Zarya stopped speaking and picked at her meal. Sometimes, to her own ear she sounded like she was being a know-it-all and she did not mean for it to come out that way. They were simply words from her heart. Words formed from time, experience and she knew, at this time, it was to try and ease the burden Lucian put on himself. It was more than any warrior should have to bear.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

After he moved to where Zarya indicated, Lucian listened to her words, watching her as he lifted small bites of food to his lips without looking away from her. Her words pulled a soft sigh from him, even if the light pressure of her hand on his dragonscale-clad knee made him smile.

"I hear you, Zarya, I truly do, and I know that you are right. We all make our own choices, even if they are to follow orders." Lucian let out a soft sigh but continued. "I don't know if it's just survivor's guilt mixed with knowing what it all led to, but I just..." He paused again, dropping his gaze once more. "It's so hard to not feel like I deserve it...or deserve...something for what I have done."

Lucian could feel Zarya's passion when it came to dragons, and it was ultimately those words and that passion that had him lifting his head once more. "I understand how you feel about dragons, at least a little I think." His eyes glazed over a little as his head tilted upwards. "It truly was a beautiful and magnificent creature. It's power was awe-inspiring, it's rage...utterly terrifying..." His gaze dropped, cleared, and met hers once more. "I have no desire to fight another of their kind, and will fight beside on their behalf if they would have me. My soul may be tainted by the life that I took and the lives that I sacrificed, but so long as there is breath in my body, it will fight for what's right."

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya picked at her food as she listened. There was no way to ease the torment Lucian was going through. It had become his own personal hell.

“Prince Lucian, it is far more than a passion for them. Dragons have been around for a very long time. The same ones. They have this life span I cannot begin to understand. They must be terribly lonely beings, I think. To watch the world you have known, change and not always for the best. There is such huge amounts of knowledge in them. I think we, as humans, had the opportunity to acquire such knowledge, we would go mad. They have watched humans come and go, watched them make their mistakes, watched their avarice and any number of things, yet, they go on. Can you imagine living so long that everyone and everything you’ve ever known leaves you? What sadness that must be.”

Zarya sighed, “Come, we must eat up and be on our way. According to the map we should encounter the first temple sometime this day.”

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian slowly picked at his food as he listened to Zarya, once more trying to give her the majority of his attention, hopefully shown by his lifted gaze.

"Heh, truthfully? I can't even begin to imagine how much knowledge is contained in the mind of a single dragon, let alone the combined knowledge of all dragonkind. The thought of it alone is...overwhelming...to have seen so much, watched it change, both for the better and for the worse...remarkable creatures, truly."

At Zarya's urging, Lucian finished his meal as quickly as he could, while also of course making sure that he didn't go too fast and risk throwing it up. When he was done, he let his eyes close as he let out a soft groan of contentment before he placed his hands on his knees and pushed himself to his feet. He walked back to his sword, and bent deeply at the waist to scoop up both it and it's scabbard. His hands moved swiftly and naturally, sheathing the blade and securing it to his waist. He then helped Zarya in cleaning up their dishes, or at least as much as he could, before moving towards his previously discarded backpack, slinging it over one shoulder, and then looping his other arm through the other shoulder strap. He adjusted the straps, tightening them so that the pack rested higher up on his back before turning towards her and nodding his readiness.

"Ready when you are..." Lucian offered up with a smile, more than happy to both be under way, and make genuine progress on his mission. Even if this temple ended up being a random temple instead of the one they needed, any progress was still good progress, as it would rule out at least this one, narrowing down the search area at least a little bit.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya took one last look at the map before rolling it and placing it in her backpack. She also took something out, a machete. They would need this from now on. The jungle was only going to get denser. Taking up her spear, she led the way out of the cave and briefly paused to let her eyes adjust to the rising sun’s rays that filtered down through the trees. The sunlight felt good on her skin.

“This way, Prince Lucian.”

She headed North. Here, the jungle started to grow denser and Zarya had to stop a few times to hack away at vines and foliage. As much as she hated disturbing the jungle, it was a necessity. Every now and then she looked over her shoulder to ensure that Lucian was with her. Because of the thick jungle, it didn’t allow for walking side by side. The quietness of the jungle, other than the sounds from its inhabitants, and the inability to speak to the prince, gave Zarya plenty of time to think. Queen Delanira had thoughtfully included small descriptions of each temple they would be looking for.

The Earth Temple. Ancient by some, it would be covered in vines. Traps and snares would be found the closer they got to it. They would need to watch not only what was in front or behind or sideways of them but watch where they stepped as well. It would seem daunting to those who did not normally live here in the jungle. There was no doubt in her mind that Lucian was tried in battle, but how would he far avoiding what lay in front of them?

As the sun rose in the sky above, the jungle grew a little darker as they went. Less light filtered down through the dense overhead hanging trees. They had to dodge monkeys as the little imps swung overhead pelting them with fruit or whatever they had in hand. It was those sitting on branches that Zarya didn’t trust. Having experience with monkeys before, she knew they were quite capable of flinging their poo at the unsuspecting passersby. She kept a wary eye on them.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian waited patiently as Zarya took one last look at the map before tucking it away, withdrawing a machete as she did so. While he was of course no woodsman, he had a pretty good feeling what it was for, and thus didn't question her about it or why she hadn't pulled it out until now. The last thing to do before they left, was to nod at her words and follow her out of the cave, scooping up his cloak along the way, putting it on and securing it tightly while they walked.

While Zarya naturally led the way, Lucian followed closer to her this time. His right hand rested comfortably on the hilt of his katana as the pair walked, his eyes constantly scanning the ground and the plant life on both sides. He didn't really know what to look for outside of the plant that had almost killed him, but he at least knew to be more wary now.

As the day wore on, Lucian couldn't help but marvel at how the jungle got darker. It of course made sense, because the canopies were the densest part of the jungle, making it harder for the light to go straight down, as opposed to at an angle during the morning and evening, but he marveled at it all the same. His marvel turned to wariness as monkeys started to swing overhead, usually staying high up and pelting them with fruit or branches, but sometimes they swung lower, forcing the pair to dodge potentially clubbing blows from the small but momentum propelled creatures. He swallowed hard as they continued to walk, his eyes occasionally watering from the stress of constantly being open and on alert. He could of course use his sword if he had to, but given that Zarya didn't lash out at the monkeys, even the ones that swung close, he followed her lead. This was her home after all, and he would respect it.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya called a halt to their travels a few hours in. She was more than aware of Lucian and his health although, she had to hand it to him, he never once complained or asked for a small break. However, Zarya was going to give it to him. They had left the monkeys some distance behind when she called for a stop. She stopped to check out a fallen log and when she deemed it safe, she gestured toward it.

“Let us stop here for a time, Prince Lucian. Please sit. I’ll return shortly.”

She cast him a reassuring glance then disappeared into the jungle And returning a few minutes later with some fruit in her arms. She sat down on the log and opened her pack, extracting a couple of wooden spoons. She passed one along to him and then taking up one of the fruit she brought back, she sliced it open and handed him half.

“It’s called maracuya (writer’s note: aka passion fruit). Scoop out the pulp and eat it. It’s sweet and tangy. It’s good.”

Zarya demonstrated and ate the pulpy inside of the maracuya. It was, if not anything else, good for a person to eat. She had also found some bacaba. She would cook it up when they stopped for the evening. She had also got lucky and found some cocona. This she would use to make them something different to drink tonight as well.

“How are you doing, Prince Lucian?”

She expected an honest answer from him. It would do neither of them any good if they avoided speaking about how they were doing. She was use to this kind of thing. Prince Lucian, she was sure, was not. That did not make him weak in her eyes. It simply made her aware.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Today's trek through the jungle was long and hard, made only more so as the sun got higher and higher in the sky. Lucian was hot, sweaty, and exhausted as he pushed on after Zarya. He felt the added weight of his armor with each passing hour. The same was of course true of the heavy black cloak he wore, though to a lesser degree, given how much less it weighed than the armor, but he had nobody to blame for either of them than himself. He of course knew that those tortures were self-inflicted. He was reminded of them with every heavy step and panting breath. Despite all of it though, he did his best to keep up with Zarya. Yes, he knew that she had to slow down for him to keep up, but that was as much her choice as his clothes and armor were his. He made no plea for her to slow down, and didn't ask for any breaks, being as eager to reach the temple as she was. That said, he was more than a little relieved when she signaled for them to stop and gestured towards the large log.

Lucian didn't offer up a single complaint about the rest, and happily slid the pack off his shoulders, and even did the same with the cloak after he undid both sets of ties. He let out a low groan as he sat down on the log, taking the weight off of his feet, and lifted his arms upwards to stretch his back.

With nothing else to divert his attention, it was hard for Lucian not to be at least a little concerned about Zarya. Each minute that she was gone, even if it was only a handful of them, found his anxiety growing. That anxiety was matched by his relief when she reappeared, a smile coming to his face.

Lucian's stomach was growling from the walk, and his throat was as dry as a bone. Still, he managed to be patient, taking the spoon that she offered him, the half of the fruit that she gave to him, and wait for her to show him what to do before following her lead. The taste was like heaven on his dry tongue, pulling a low groan from him and making his eyes close of their own volition.

Zarya's question caught Lucian a bit off guard. Still, he turned to face her, offered up a small smile, and spoke. "Would you believe me if I said I was missing my horse right about now?" He said before offering up a soft chuckle and taking another bite of maracuya. "I've done my fair share of traveling, being a prince expected to make a political marriage and all that, but those travels were always by horse or carriage." He paused to suck in a couple of huge shameless breaths, bending over, inhaling, and exhaling through his mouth rather than properly breathing from his core. When he was done though, he sat up fully, took another bite of the maracuya, and spoke again. "Seriously though, I'm hot, sweaty, and exhausted, but I'm okay." To emphasize his point, he lifted his hands in front of them, knowing that they would shake for a variety of reasons that would be concerning. His hands were as steady as his gaze that met hers though, and he gave her another small smile, paired with a nod, hoping to convey that he did appreciate her concern. "I do appreciate the break though. I was just trying to push through to the end. I'm looking forward to seeing the temple, and hopefully what's inside it."

 

[DarkWarrioress]

"Would you believe me if I said I was missing my horse right about now?

That made Zarya chuckle. She had been becoming concerned about Lucian. She knew he had health issues and she didn’t want to push too hard. However, there was the ever looming presence of his father and that charlatan at his side to keep in mind. They must not be allowed to breech any of the temples first.

"I've done my fair share of traveling, being a prince expected to make a political marriage and all that, but those travels were always by horse or carriage."

“Ahhh and is there a future princess in the making, Prince Lucian?”

Zarya didn’t know what possessed her to tease him, but her only excuse was that she was finding herself becoming rather fond of the prince. He had a good heart.

"Seriously though, I'm hot, sweaty, and exhausted, but I'm okay."

Zarya shook her head slightly.

“As glad as I am to see your hands steady, you are not okay if you are all of those things, but we are not far from the temple now. Once we get inside or perhaps just outside of it, hopefully the gods will let us rest before we take on the first challenge. At least one can wish for it to be so. I suppose we’ll find out.

I am curious as well as to what we’ll see inside the temple, but I suspect our trial will start almost immediately by then. If the gods wanted people inside them, they would still be in use. I’m sure they are sealed for a reason.”

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Zarya's joke pulled a soft chuckle from Lucian, or what started as one anyway. It quickly grew into a full-bellied laugh though. "Well, we all have our own lots in life I suppose." He started, the smile he'd worn previously returning to his lips as he held her gaze. "Some lead armies and conquer nations." He continued, the smile still on his face. "Others plough fields to provide for their families. My lot is marrying a princess and spending years in bedding her and making heirs." He let his smile fade into a clearly joking dismay. "Heh, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it."

The smile remained on Lucian's face as he continued to eat the fruit, one spoonful at a time. He tried to go slow, even with the snack, lest he cause cramps in his belly when he started to exert himself on the trek once more.

"I certainly wouldn't be opposed to a rest before the first challenge, whatever it is." Lucian said, responding to Zarya's words and curiosities about the temple. "And yes, it's tough to say when it comes to the gods, their whims, and their desires. Why build such a place, meant for gather and worship, only to put something almost certainly dangerous and deadly in it as well?" He shook his head slowly as he only briefly tried to unravel such a conundrum. "It's enough to drive one to madness..."

 

[DarkWarrioress]

"Heh, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it."

“What about your elder brother? Doesn’t he have that responsibility? The need to propagate your father’s kingdom. I would think it falls to him, although, given that he’s fallen in with your father and this demon, I’m not so sure of his fate. No offense to your father. I’m sure he’s under this demon’s spell. As is your brother. Or so I hope.”

Upon hearing his wishes, she nodded.

“Of course and rest we shall. We’ll stay here for now. Will you be alright here alone for a while? I want to scout on ahead just a bit. I’ll be looking for traps.”

Although Lucian had showed some sense of humor and he was eating, Zarya was still concerned. He had fought a dragon before. He had strength of will and character. Still, in the back of her mind, she worried. When they would first encounter dire troubles, would Lucian experience flashbacks? No one knew, not even Lucian himself, how his mind would respond to those experiences, given what he had come through. Zarya finished up her fruit and was putting away her utensils and pulling a water jug from her pack, taking a good-sized drink from it.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian chuckled at Zarya's words, but nodded as well.

"Yes, that duty does of course fall to my brother as well. Though he also has...or rather had, to worry about learning to fight, command, and rule. I was only going to be expected to make a political marriage, and bed her to make heirs in case something happened to my brother."

Lucian's gaze lowered from Zarya's for a moment as he pondered her question. It wasn't so much that he thought that he was going to wander off, so much as he was debating if he wanted to try and push himself to go with her instead of resting.

"Yes..." Lucian said at last, lifting his head and meeting Zarya's gaze once more. "If you want to go and scout, I can rest here and prepare for the last leg of the journey. I promise not to wander off, and I won't be touching anymore strange flowers." He said the first part with a straight face, but let a small smile come to his lips as he made the small joke at his own expense with his final words.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya gave a small nod, her eyes looked him over. He seemed fine but there was something he wasn’t telling her, she could tell. However, whatever it was, it was his to tell. Her lips quirked at the corners as he mentioned strange flowers.

“Yes, please, don’t. I’ll try not to be too long. You rest. I’m leaving my pack with you.”

She did pick up her spear, however. With one final look at Lucian, she headed off. Her eyes were already scanning the jungle floor. She had heard stories about traps being set some distance out from the pyramids. Stories or not, it was worth being cautious. Zarya crept through the forest, her eyes and ears open. The lack of sounds bothered her. Suddenly, she could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rise up.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian watched as Zarya picked up her spear, gave one last look at him, and headed off into the trees. As he sat there alone, his mind was immediately reminded of something that he normally did every morning but that he hadn't yet done today. He waited a bit longer though, waiting for her to get out of earshot, lest she come running back thinking he was in danger.

With a long, slow, and deep breath, Lucian's body faced East as his eyes slowly drifted closed and his hands slowly lowered. One hand grasped the sheath of his katana, as the other grasped it's hilt as he focused on the kata he had long since memorized. Normally he would start to move when he felt the first touch of the suns rays, but since the day had long since started, he simply counted down in his head, timing it out with his breasts. Lucian drew the blade from it's resting place as he exhaled. His motions slow and practiced, each almost seeming to flow into the other as he slashed at nothing, lifted to parry an imagined blow, brought the blade up over his head and came around with a spinning horizontal slash. The motions started slow, each leading to the other as the speed slowly increased. The process only required a handful of minutes, but Lucian continued anyway, enjoying the exercise that came with the kata. When he finally stopped, he was breathing heavily and sweating freely. He'd turned and pivoted this way and that during the kata, but he'd finished almost exactly as he'd started, facing East. the only difference was that his sword was out and ready as his eyes slowly slid open.

Lucian paid his sweating and heavy breathing no mind. A small smile came to his face as he flicked his sword back from the ready position, steadied the sheath with his other hand, and sheathed his blade in a single, fast, and fluid motion. With his mind and body finally properly centered and ready for the day and whatever challenges it might bring, he took his seat on the log once more, and ate some more fruit by the spoonful while he waited for Zarya to return once more.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya was slashing her way through the jungle. It wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. Her eyes constantly checked the jungle floor looking for anything that might be out of place there. Though, admittedly, she had no true concept of how long it had been since the last time the temple had been approached. The jungle floor could be concealing any traps even more so. So, she stepped gingerly and moved toward the direction of the first temple, stopping often to check the map her queen had given her. Another small part of her mind was on Lucian and hoping he remained safe while she scouted.

She crested an incline and spied the temple below, still covered in vines. Zarya listened to the jungle. So far, so good. Nothing seemed out of place. Her eyes scoured the vine infested walls. The entrance was not on this side. Should she traverse down and try to find it or retrieve Lucian so they both could find it at the same time? While she held an internal debate with herself, her eyes were scanning the land below. There wasn’t much to see of the temple itself from the outside but she was also wondering just what they were going to run into before they entered. What challenges awaited them? Were they man made or something more? Personally, she had no experience with things that from outside the world she knew and hardly anything of a Divine nature… or otherwise. Zarya turned and headed back toward where she had left Lucian. Perhaps it was better if they faced the unknown together.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Waiting for Zarya to come back was harder than Lucian than he expected it to be. The first hour was easier because of his kata, the time it took, and the better state of mind performing it put him in. Subsequent hours though, just got harder and felt longer. The position of the sun overhead, and the lack of shadows in the clearing definitely didn't help. It made it that much harder for him to even try and keep track of how long she'd been gone so that he could gauge his worry accordingly. He was of course tempted to go and look for her, because he at least knew which direction she'd exited the clearing from, but his previous experience with the plant kept him from doing it. Him getting lost, injured, and potentially killed looking for her wasn't going to do anybody any good. So as hard as it was for him, he did as he'd said he would, and stayed in the clearing.

As the hours ticked by and his worry for Zarya grew, Lucian's senses seemed to pick up. His ears strained to hear the sound of her approaching through all of the other noise going on around him, and his gaze kept darting this way and that as he checked on every tiny movement on the tree line, hoping that it was her.

Even when Lucian did finally hear something that sounded out of place though, it didn't truly put his mind at ease. He rose slowly to his feet, casting his gaze this way and that as he moved himself slowly towards the center of the clearing. His hand slowly moved towards the hilt of his sheathed katana as the sound got closer and closer, finally coming to rest on it. His fingers closed around it as his left hand grasped the sheath, fully readying himself to attack if whatever was approaching proved to be hostile.

 

[DarkWarrioress]

Zarya hurried back as fast as was reasonable and cautious through jungle she was not familiar with. She knew Lucian would grow worried if she did not return soon. As she stepped through some brush to the spot where she had left him….

“Lucian, I thought it would be ----”

She had been speaking to air and gave a soft groan. Glancing about, she spotted him straight ahead, in a clearing before her. Observing him closely, her eyes darting from left to right, she spotted nothing. Yet, something had the prince on high guard. His hand was on his katana, wrapped around its hilt. Again, her eyes scanned their surroundings and still she saw nothing….yet. Clearly, the young prince had heard something. Stealthily she crept up behind him and stopped a mere few feet from his person. Her hand on her spear tightened. The small wispy hair at the back of her neck stood up. Something…. or someone, was in the jungle, coming their way. She moved to Lucian’s left side, giving him some space and needing some of her own.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Lucian heard Zarya's voice when she came into the clearing, and he lifted his left hand to try and silence her, even as his right hand stayed on the hilt of his weapons and his eyes remained in the direction of where the sound was coming from. When she stopped talking, his left hand returned to the scabbard, gripping it to make unsheathing the weapon that much easier and fluid.

The rustling of the trees grew closer, and now Lucian knew for sure that it wasn't Zarya. He felt a bead of sweat drip distractingly down his neck, and another try to drip off his brown into his eye to impede his vision. It got closer and closer until even the brush of the tree line was starting to shake. His hand closed more fully around the hilt of his katana as his left thumb pushed it out just a little, then...a wild pig lumbered out of the brush, grunting and growling as it foraged. It was a bit pig, standing almost 4 feet tall, but a pig all the same.

Lucian let out a soft sigh as his sword hand relaxed, even if it didn't fully come off of his sword, he looked back over his shoulder at Zarya before he took a couple of small steps back towards her. He turned back towards the pig when he heard a different sound, and looked just in time to see not one but a handful of piglets follow her out of the brush, each with a squeal as they ran after her.

Lucian shook his head with a soft chuckle as he took another couple steps back, even less-inclined to take his eyes off of the large animal now that he saw that she had babies with her. "One crisis averted at least." He offered up with a smile, even though he knew that Zarya couldn't see it with him still facing the wild pig that was still foraging around the tree line. "What about you, Zarya, any lucky finding the temple?" He asked, still not daring to take his eyes off of the beast long enough to look at her.